The Grade A and Grade C teams both took gold in the BOCHK Archery Cup, forcing Diocesan Girls' School into second place
Hong Kong True Light College won the overall girls' champion at this year's BOCHK Archery Cup. Hong Kong True Light College was crowned the overall girls’ champions again at the BOCHK Archery Cup today, clinching gold in the team events in Grade A and Grade C. This is the school’s seventh consecutive win since 2012.
Held at the Aberdeen Sports Centre, the BOCHK Archery Cup featured junior archers from schools across Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. Contestants had to go through two rounds of competition, in which they would fire 60 arrows with their recurve bow at the assigned target that was placed 18 metres away.
After the Grade C and Grade B events in the morning, it all came down to the Grade A events to determine which school would seize the overall champion title. Hong Kong True Light College had been considered the strong favourite, given their six-year winning streak.
The Grade A team did not let their teammates down, beating their long-time rival Diocesan Girls’ School with a total of 1,484 points to DGS’ 1,467.
In a post-match interview, the True Light Grade A team said it was a tough victory because the Form Five members struggle to find time to practise amid their increased workload from school.
“We were all quite nervous this year because we have reduced our training time by a lot. With supplementary classes every day, it has been really difficult to find time for training,” said 16-year-old Tera Leung Lok-yiu.
To make up for lost time, the team had to sacrifice public holidays and head to school for extra practice. They also imposed stricter rules during training, such as banning the use of mobile phones, to make sure all archers were fully focused on the task at hand.
The team thanked their coach Wong Sir, who was sick last year and could not instruct them. Under his guidance, the team had become more disciplined and close-knit, which was also a key to defending their title this year.
When asked what goals have they set for next year, Melody Chan Yin-tsun, 16, said the team may come back stronger after tackling the HKDSE.
“I think we’ll have more time to focus on archery after the DSE. Without the burden of the public exam, we may feel less stressed and hence can deliver a better performance,” said Melody.
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